Kern Vol. 5 - Exclusives + Rarities

Throughout the 2010s, Hamburgs Helena Hauff earned a reputation as one of the worlds most exciting DJs, thanks to her uncompromising and often lengthy sets which seamlessly mix electro, EBM, acid, and hard techno. She was the first woman to be awarded BBC Radio 1s Essential Mix of the Year (in 2017), and shes delivered standout sets at festivals like Dekmantel, Bangface, and Movement. Her mix for Tresors Kern series is a gargantuan two-hour trip that effortlessly glides through techno and electros darker regions. Much of the mixs first half is dystopian music for killbots, but instead of being an industrial clang-a-thon, theres still somewhat of a bounce to it, including nods to ghettotech and jit. The set ventures into unruly hardcore with welcome inclusions from Welsh brother duo Somatic Responses and Australian legends Nasenbluten before getting back on track with tense, hard-hitting electro from artists like Umwelt, Shedbug, and L.F.T. (whose exclusive track Data Move is a total earth-shaker). The mix maintains its intensity until the final comedown, which arrives in the form of a creeping downtempo cut from Andrea Parker and David Morley. Listening to recordings of any of Hauffs sets is the next best thing to seeing her live, but Kern, Vol. 5 is an especially well-crafted home-listening experience that transports as well as stomps. ~ Paul Simpson